By Nathaniel R. Helms
See NIJ Ballistic Standards at bottom of story.
It is good enough body armor that nine American generals in Afghanistan
are wearing it in place of the standard "Interceptor OTV" armor issued
to the troops they command. It offers such great protection that the
U.S. Secret Service agents guarding the President of the United States
wear it, and it is good enough that a civilian contractor in Iraq was
shot eight times in the torso at close range and survived without even
suffering soft tissue trauma. But the same armor, already in mass
production, is apparently too expensive to provide to the men and women
fighting and dying in the Global War on Terror (GWOT) every day.
The armor is called Dragon Skin and there is nothing particularly new
about it. Dragon Skin has been made since 1997 by Pinnacle Armor, a
small Fresno, California company with 30 employees. It is called Dragon
Skin because it is manufactured from small overlapping armor plates
that lay atop each other like ancient chain mail, explained Pinnacle
spokesman Paul Chopra, "or like fish scales, but my boss didn't think
it sounded too sexy calling it "Fish Skin."
Regardless of what it is called every military service, many federal
police agencies, local police departments, and the U.S. Army's
ballistic testing facility at Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland have
purchased small quantities of the unique armor. Among its owners and
users it has a sterling reputation, numerous sources told DefenseWatch.
Outside the government parents, spouses and church groups who heard
about its superior qualities through word-of-mouth are also purchasing
the high-tech chain mail for their knights going in harm's way.
Chopra said Pinnacle has privately sold hundreds of the armored vests
and ancillary equipment to service members. Despite the well known
qualities of Dragon Skin, in 1999 the Department of Defense
inexplicably chose the Interceptor armor for the Armed Forces two year
after Dragon Skin became available on the open market.
The crux of the issue Dragon Skin presents is discovering the measure
the Department of Defense used to decide why the merely good
Interceptor OTV armor was good enough for America's warriors when the
best body armor has been available for purchase since the Global War on
Terror began. So far the Department of Defense has declined to respond
to numerous DefenseWatch requests to answer the question.
Pinnacle Armor representative Charlene Chessum said part of the reason
Dragon Skin is not being issued to every service member going into
battle is overcoming the inertia endemic in huge institutions like the
military, and in part because of the laws of economies of scale say
that the more product a manufacturer can make, the cheaper a
product is to produce.
When it comes to body armor the Department of Defense apparently looks
more at cost than quality.
I. Dragon Skin Body Armor.
A complete suit of Dragon Skin armor, at more than $5,000 per copy,
currently costs about five times as much as Interceptor OTV body armor
being issued to the troops. Inceptor armor is primarily produced by two
giant companies, Armor Holdings Corporation, the current darling of the
Defense Department that has more government contracts than a junk yard
dog has fleas, and Point Blank Body Armor, the flagship company of DHB
Industries that is currently in the dog house. They can both afford to
make it cheap.
Several armor experts, who design, manufacture and sell body armor to
individuals and police agencies said that size, cost, and accessibility
is what drives the Pentagon's decision on what to buy and whom to buy
it from. The same explanation begs the question of how much the lives
of America's fighting men and women are worth, they said.
Granted, Dragon Skin does have a hefty price tag, but it also save
lives, they unanimously agreed.
The basic Dragon Skin vest for torso protection costs about $2,000 and
the entire getup, which includes a protective collar, optional
lightweight SAPI plates, an optional weight bearing rig, backpack
plates, and an armored, take-it-with-you anywhere protective blanket,
can run an individual more than $5,000. The basic Interceptor body
armor issued to American troops costs about $1,100, although the wearer
receives far less protection, ballistics information provided by both
the manufacturers and the U.S. Army showed. According to the statistics
provided by Pinnacle, in Army-supervised ballistics tests Dragon Skin's
protective qualities "far exceeded" anything
available anywhere else, Chessum said.
Unfortunately, the Army decided to classify its specific findings
recorded in ballistics tests recently concluded by the US Army Research
Laboratory (ARL) in Aberdeen, Maryland on Pinnacle's Level IV body
armor system except to say it "surpassed all current industry
standards" and "set standards" leading to a "classified protocol,"
according to the Army.
Fortunately David Crane, a military defense industry analyst and the
editor-in-chief of DefenseReview.com, got to check out Dragon Skin
before its superior qualities became a national secret. He called
Dragon Skin the "future of armor" in an article he wrote called Body
Armor Times 10: Pinnacle's Innovative, Flexible Body Armor
In it Crane said,
"Understand, again, that we're talking about a unique and superior
version of level IV body armor/ballistic protection, not your
conventional, run-of-the-mill NIJ [National Institute of Justice] level
IV SAPI protection. Pinnacle Armor's unique Level IV "+" flexible
ceramic hard armor will successfully take many more hits than
conventional/standard NIJ Level IV SAPI plates, and provides coverage
over a much greater surface area. In other words, it provides for more
complete torso coverage, all the way up to total coverage."
II. Ceramic Stopper: Section of SOV-1000/Dragon Skin disc/panel with
M80 ball round stuck in it. M80 ball is a Level IV ballistic threat,
and Pinnacle's SOV-1000 Level III "+" system has stopped it. Backface
Deformation Signature is only 9mm (just over 5/16").
Crane also discovered that Pinnacle's titanium composite and ceramic
composite flexible hard armor system ballistic vests are "significantly
superior, ballistically and durability-wise" to the Interceptor's
inflexible, conventional ceramic hard armor plates. Army scientists at
the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center-Natick, in Natick, Mass, where
Interceptor body armor was created, are currently dealing with breakage
problems with the Interceptor's ceramic armor plates including
unconfirmed reports that up to 60 percent of its hard armor sent to the
field has broken when its gets slammed around, a source close to the
situation said.
Breakage is never a problem with the Pinnacle products because its SAPI
plates are a very durable composite material and so-called "soft"
Dragon Skin armor consists of silver dollar-sized circular ballistic
ceramic or titanium discs that are configured like fish scales,
explained Chopra, a tireless Dragon Skin promoter and a retired Army
CW4 who flew choppers for 21 years in the famed 160th "Nightstalkers"
Aviation Brigade.
"If somebody needs complete front, rear, and side protection over the
entire area of the vest, we can provide it," he said. "Any combination
or configuration is possible."
III. The future of armor: Pinnacle Armor Inc. SOV-1000 Level III
"scalar" body armor shot with multiple 7.62x51mm M80 ball
steel-jacketed rounds at 2850-2900 fps, at a distance of 15ft (muzzle
to body armor). The rounds were all successfully stopped with minimal
backface deformation signature.
In the simplest terms it means the wearer's entire upper torso,
including the neck area, can be protected by body armor superior to any
Level III and Level IV body armor made in the world. Ballistics tests
made on a standard vest showed it capable of defeating most common
military ammunition and many of the armor piercing and super hot
specialty rounds including the super-hot 7.62 x 63 mm 166 GR, M2 AP
slamming into it at an incredible 2850 ft per second. Inceptor OTV body
armor cannot claim that distinction, Chopra said.
Crane agreed, calling Dragon Skin "simply the best armor out there
right now for our guys. That being the case, he added, "Pinnacle has a
technology that can better keep our guys alive. End of story."
The proof is in the pudding, so to speak. An operator working for a
private security contractor dressed in Dragon Skin survived a firefight
he claims he would have died in wearing any other armor. In a
June 24, 2005 letter to Pinnacle provided to DefenseWatch, he said,
"... we were involved in a IED (improvised explosive device) attack and
small arms fire on (deleted) 2005.
After the contact, when I removed my tactical vest, I saw that I had
taken hits in the back of my vest. They were 7.62x39mm (AK-47)
and they were inches apart. I was hit in the back (and we
checked, if I was wearing any other body armor, I would not be writing
this to you), as it were both low hits (below the typical 10"x12" plate
coverage). In terms of bruising, nothing whatsoever. I did
not even KNOW that I was hit twice until I took off my tactical vest
(this was after about 2 hours after the contact) and saw the
damage. It was only then that we took a close look at my body
armor that we realized I was hit twice by an AK-47. I had another
ricochet hit around the top end of my back that may have caused serious
injury to my lower neck."
Perhaps testimonials like the operator's letter - Pinnacle has received
many - is why nine American general officers bought Pinnacle armor on
July 5, 2005 to "evaluate" it during their tours in Afghanistan.
"They are trying to find out just how good Dragon Skin really is,"
Chopra said.
On October 5 Pinnacle announced it had received a $4.7 million federal
contract to provide the US Air Force and "other federal agencies" more
of its body forming, virtually impenetrable product. Dragon Skin
can be wrapped around a basketball, its manufacturer says. The most
notable of the federal agencies included in the modest contract was the
US Secret Service, which guards the President. Even before it was
official issue several of the President's men were already wearing it,
an industry expert said.
While $4.7 million is a princely sum to most folks it is a pittance
compared to the money being paid to body armor giant Armor Holdings,
Inc. by the Department of Defense. This year Army Armor Holdings
received nine contracts to make Level III and Level IIIA capable
Interceptor OTV body armor, associated accessories and helmets
including:
Sep 20, 2005 - $17 Million Order for Individual Body Armor Outer
Tactical Vests
Aug 31, 2005 - $17.4 Million Order for Individual Soldier Load
Carrying Equipment
Aug 25, 2005 - $291 Million ID/IQ Contract By U.S. Army For
Advanced Combat Helmet
Aug 08, 2005 - $14.4 Million Order for Ceramic Body Armor Inserts
Jul 13, 2005 - Armor Holdings, Inc. Selected As Exclusive
Provider To Replace Up To 156,000 Vests Manufactured By Second Chance
Body Armor
Jul 05, 2005 - $45.2 Million Order for U.S. Army Ceramic Body
Armor Inserts
Apr 14, 2005 - Receives Awards Totaling $11.4 Million for
Individual Soldier Load Carrying Equipment and Helmets
Apr 04, 2005 - Armor Holdings, Inc. Awarded $16 Million for
Individual Body Armor Outer Tactical Vests
Mar 01, 2005 - Awarded an Incremental $31 Million for U.S. Army
Body Armor Inserts
Armor Holdings took its lead from Point Blank Body Armor, which also
manufactures the Interceptor OTV armor. Point Blank operates three
factories in Broward County, FL and is currently the largest supplier
of body armor to the U.S. government until its contracts run out.
In 1999, Point Blank
was the weak daughter of parent company DHB Industries that lost $22.3
million on $35.1 million in revenue. Things were only marginally better
the next year and then 9/11 happened. Subsequently DHB/Point Blank's
profits soared. In 2001 and 2002 a Department of Defense desperately
seeking to fill body armor shortages provided the Florida-based company
contracts that boosted its profits to $10.1 million and $16 million
respectively on a combined $228.3 million in revenue, according to
industry sources.
It was too bad for
Point Blank that its armor wasn't completely bullet proof. Soon after
the company received another $9.2 million contract in 2002 to produce
body armor for Army engineers charged with disposing of landmines a
labor dispute erupted that landed Point Blank in a Florida Federal
Court.
Evidence and testimony
offered during the dispute revealed the company was allegedly putting
profits before quality.
Attorneys for labor
union involved in the dispute submitted 150 pages of evidence that
alleged quality problems with Point Blank's body armor. Among the
documents were Department of Defense reports from American soldiers
fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. The DOD documents showed 43
percent of soldiers in Operation Enduring Freedom complained that Point
Blank's body armor "hindered their mobility," court records show.
As early as July 19,
2004, according to memos originally obtained by the Army Times
newspaper, the Marine Corps found "major quality assurance deficiencies
within Point Blank." One month later, on August 24, 2004, the military
rejected two orders from Point Blank after tests revealed that the
vests did not meet safety requirements.
Faced with a severe
shortage of body armor the Army decided that nine Point Blank orders
that did not meet safety requirements would be sent to troops overseas
anyway, according to the court records. On May 3, 2005 Point Blank
hired retired four-star Army Gen. Larry Ellis to lead the beleaguered
company. On May 4, 2005, the U.S. Marine Corps recalled 5,277
Interceptor vests manufactured by Point Blank Body Armor. On July 20
Point Blank received an additional $10.1 million contract from the U.S.
government.
"It is always about
money or politics," Crane said.
Meanwhile America's
warrior fight on, facing death every day wearing clearly inferior body
armor when the best is only dollars away.
In Part II
DefenseWatch explores what "the best there is" really means, including
protection levels, materials, and how such things as cost, political
connections, and cronyism affect an American warrior's ability to
survive on the modern battlefield.
DefenseWatch Editor
Nathaniel R. "Nat" Helms is a Vietnam veteran, former police officer,
long-time journalist and war correspondent living in Missouri. He is
the author of two books, Numba One - Numba Ten and Journey Into
Madness: A Hitchhiker's Account of the Bosnian Civil War, both
available at www.ebooks-online.com. He can be reached at
natshouse1@charter.net. Send Feedback responses to dwfeedback@yahoo.com
*********************
National Institute Of Justice
Body Armor Standards
The classification of an armor panel that provides two or more levels
of NIJ ballistic protection at different locations on the ballistic
panel shall be that of the minimum ballistic protection provided at any
location on the panel.
Type I (22 LR; 380 ACP)
This armor protects against .22 caliber Long Rifle Lead Round Nose (LR
LRN) bullets, with nominal masses of 2.6 g (40 gr) impacting at a
minimum velocity of 320 m/s (1050 ft/s) or less, and 380 ACP Full Metal
Jacketed Round Nose (FMJ RN) bullets, with nominal masses of 6.2 g (95
gr) impacting at a minimum velocity of 312 m/s (1025 ft/s) or less.
Type IIA (9 mm; 40 S&W)
This armor protects against 9 mm Full Metal Jacketed Round Nose (FMJ
RN) bullets, with nominal masses of 8.0 g (124 gr) impacting at a
minimum velocity of 332 m/s (1090 ft/s) or less, and 40 S&W caliber
Full Metal Jacketed (FMJ) bullets, with nominal masses of 11.7g
(180 gr) impacting at a minimum velocity of 312 m/s (1025 ft/s) or
less. It also provides protection against the threats mentioned in
section 2.1.
Type II (9 mm; 357 Magnum)
This armor protects against 9 mm Full Metal Jacketed Round Nose (FMJ
RN) bullets, with nominal masses of 8.0 g (124 gr) impacting at a
minimum velocity of 358 m/s (1175 ft/s) or less, and 357 Magnum
Jacketed Soft Point (JSP) bullets, with nominal masses of 10.2 g (158
gr) impacting at a minimum velocity of 427 m/s (1400 ft/s) or less. It
also provides protection against the threats mentioned in sections 2.1
and 2.2.
Type IIIA (High Velocity 9 mm; 44 Magnum)
This armor protects against 9 mm Full Metal Jacketed Round Nose (FMJ
RN) bullets, with nominal masses of 8.0 g (124 gr) impacting at a
minimum velocity of 427 m/s (1400 ft/s) or less, and 44 Magnum Semi
Jacketed Hollow Point (SJHP) bullets, with nominal masses of 15.6 g
(240 gr) impacting at a minimum velocity of 427 m/s (1400 ft/s) or
less. It also provides protection against most handgun threats, as well
as the threats mentioned in sections 2.1, 2.2, and 2.3.
Type III (Rifles)
This armor protects against 7.62 mm Full Metal Jacketed (FMJ) bullets
(U.S. Military designation M80), with nominal masses of 9.6 g (148 gr)
impacting at a minimum velocity of 838 m/s (2750 ft/s) or less. It also
provides protection against the threats mentioned in sections 2.1, 2.2,
2.3, and 2.4.
Type IV (Armor Piercing Rifle)
This armor protects against .30 caliber armor piercing (AP) bullets
(U.S. Military designation M2 AP), with nominal masses of 10.8 g (166
gr) impacting at a minimum velocity of 869 m/s (2850 ft/s) or less. It
also provides at least single hit protection against the threats
mentioned in sections 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, and 2.5.
U.S. Army - Level V
7.62 x 54R mm 187 GR, steel case, armor piercing incendiary
BS40Classified
7.62 x 51 mm GR, M948Classified
7.62 x 51 mm 126.5 GR, M993Classified
5.56 x 45 mm 52.5 GR, M995
